Sam Nowak

Dr Sam Nowak is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography at Durham University, specializing in urban and economic geography with critical focus on digital technologies, political economy, and postcolonial urbanism in Global South contexts.

His educational background includes:

• PhD in Geography from UCLA
• MA in Geography from UCLA
• BA in Geography from the University of Washington

Nowak's research centers on Jakarta, Indonesia, examining how 'super-app' platforms transform urban governance, labor politics, and economic development through qualitative fieldwork. His work foregrounds lived experiences of the urban majority navigating digital technologies' promises and perils, while his interdisciplinary 'speculative urbanism' project with UCLA colleagues analyzes peri-urban land transformation and displacement impacts.

His recent publications reveal consistent thematic focus on Jakarta's digital economy and land speculation, demonstrating methodological rigor in connecting platform capitalism to broader political-economic structures in Global South cities through Environment and Planning A publications.

Nowak supervises PhD candidate Helen James and collaborates with The Jakarta Collective, including UCLA scholars Helga Leitner and Eric Sheppard, on urban governance and land transformation research.